Key arrangement for office machines and the like



A. BEYER 2,799,380

KEY ARRANGEMENT FOR OFFICE MACHINES AND THE LIKE July 16, 1957 FiledOct. 27. 1953 l/VKENTOP.

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-KEY ARRANGEMENT FOR OFFICE MACHINES AND THE LIKE Arthur lieyer,Wilhelmshaven, Germany, assignor to Olympia Werke Aktiengesellschaft, ajoint-stock com- Application October 27, 1953, Serial No. 388,595 Claimspriority, application'Germany- November 4, 1952 8 Claims. (Cl. 197-102)I The present invention relates to office machines such as calculatingmachines of all sorts. More particularly, the, present inventionrelates, to an arrangement for releasably mounting a key cap on a keylever of such ma,- chines.

With known office machines, the covers are generally provided with slotsthrough which the key levers extend, and it is necessary to remove thekey caps from the key levers before the machine cover can be removed. Itis usually a great inconvenience to remove the key cap, from the keylevers because special tools are often required and because the keylevers are extremely inaccessible.

' One of the objects of the present invention is to overcome the abovedrawbacks by providing a key arrangement wherein the key caps may beeasily and quickly removed. from the key levers without the use of anytools whatsoever.

Another object of the present invention is to removably connect the keycaps to the key levers in such a way that the key caps are securelyconnected to the key levers except when, removed therefrom.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a releasableconnection between a key cap and a key lever which also prevents turningof the key cap with respect to the key lever.

An additionalv object of the present invention is to provide a keyarrangement capable of accomplishing all of the above objects and at thesame time being made up of relatively few, simple and ruggedlyconstructed parts. which are inexpensive to manufacture and which willgive reliable service over a long period of time.

With the above objects in view the present invention mainly consists ofa key arrangement for office machines and the like, this key arrangementincluding a key cap formed with arecess extending inwardly fromv thebottom thereof and having at the innermost part of the recess an innerface directed toward the bottom of the key cap. An insert is located inthe recess and fixed to the key cap, this insert having an inner facelocated adjacent the inner face of the key cap and a bottom outer face.The insert is formed with a passage extending from its inner face towardits outer face and is also formed at its outer face with a first cutoutextending laterally from the passage to form a shoulder therewith. Oneof the above mentioned; inner faces is formed with a second cutoutlocated opposite the first cutout and also extending laterally from, thepassage to form a shoulder therewith. A key lever having a springy freeend portion extends. through the passage of the insert, engages theshoulders thereof, and is located in the cutouts for releasablyconnecting the key cap to the key lever.

The novel features which are considered as characteristic for theinvention are setforth in particular in the appended claims. Theinvention itself, however, both as to; its construction and its methodof operation, together withadditional objects and advantages thereof,will be best understood from the following description atent-O PatentedJuly 16, 1957 2' of specific embodiments when read in connection withthe accompanying drawings, inv which:

Fig. l is a fragmentary, side elevational, partly sectional view of akey arrangement constructed in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a view of the key cap of Fig. l as seen from the undersidethereof;

3 is a transverse sectional view of the key cap of Fig; 4 is a sectionalelevational view of an insert adapted to be fixed within the key cap ofFigs. 2 and 3;

Fig. 4a is a sectional elevational view of the insert of Fig. 4' takenat a plane which is normal to the plane of Fig. 4; and

Fig. 4b is a partly sectional top plan view of the insert of Fig. 4.

Referring now to the drawings, it will be seen that a key lever 1 of anoffice machine has a free end portion 2, made of a springy strip ofmetal, which extends through a slot ina machine cover which is indicatedin dot-dash lines in Fig. 1. This free end portion 2 of the key lever 1is formed with a cutout 3 extending inwardly from the extremity of endportion 2 and being enlarged at its innermost part to provide the freeend portion 2 of key lever 1 with a pair of springy tongues 4 and 5which are yieldabl-y movable toward each other. Each tongue has anouterside edge portion distant from the other tongue and formed with a notchso as to provide each tongue with an upper shoulder 6 and a lowershoulder 7, as viewed in Fig. 1. The free end portion 2 of the key lever1 provides the key lever with a springy means for releasably connectingthe lever 1 to a key cap means.-

This key cap means includes the key cap 8 and the insert 9. The key cap8 is formed with a recess 11 extending inwardly from its bottom facetoward its top face and having at its innermost part an inner facedirected toward the bottom of the key cap 8 and formed with a groove 12extending across this inner face of recess 11. The key cap 8 is alsoformed with a recess 13 extending inwardly-from the groove 12 andcommunicating with the top face of: key cap 8 so that this key cap maycommunicate at recessv 13 with a spray nozzle or the like for placingthe material 14, of a contrasting color with the key cap, on the topface thereof, this material 14 being provided with the indicia of thekey cap.

The insert 9, which is preferably made of metal, is fixed to the-key cap8 and located in the recess 11 thereof. For example, the insert 9 may bepress fitted in the interior of key cap 8 or it may be fixedly joinedthereto by any other suitable joining means. The insert has an inner,upper face located adjacent the groove 12 and is formed with asubstantially cylindrical recess extending downwardly from its innerface towards the bottom face of insert 9, this insert 9 being formed inits bottom face with an elongated groove 10 communicating with thecylindrical recess of the insert so that this cylindrical recess forms apassage providing communication between grooves 10 and 12.

A pair of projections 15 extend upwardly from the upper face of insert9, are located directly over the groove 10, and extend into the groove12 so that the grooves 16 and 12 are parallel with each other when theprojections 15 are located in the groove 12. Although projections 15 arepreferred for assuring the parallel relationship between grooves 10 and12, because these projections 15 also prevent any unforeseen turning ofinsert 9 with respect to key cap 8, it is also possible to omit theprojections 15 and locate the groove 10 in parallel relation with groove12 with a suitable tool when the insert 9 is fixed within the key cap 8.

the inner face of recess The notches in the outer side edges of thespringy tongues 4 and 5 have a length which is substantially equal tothe length of the cylindrical recess of insert 9 so that, as'is shown inFig. 1, when the springy tongues 4 and 5 extend through the cylindricalrecess of insert 9 the shoulders 6 engage the inner rim of insert 9 atthe inner face thereof and are located within the groove 12, while theshoulders 7 respectively engage the shoulders formed by the junctionbetween the groove and the cylindrical recess of insert 9. In effect,the groove 12 extends transversely across the top of insert 9 to form anadditional pair of shoulders with the inner upper rim thereof, theseadditional shoulders respectively cooperating with the shoulders 6. Itwill be noted that this inner upper rim of insert 9 l8 rounded and thatthe shoulders 6 are matingly rounded so that the cap means 8, 9 may beremoved from the key lever 1 simply by being pulled off from the springykey end portion 2 thereof. In order to replace the key cap means 8, 9 onthe key levers 1, 2 it is only necessary to move the tongues 4 and 5slightly toward each other so that they will enter through the groove 10into the cylindrical recess of insert 9. Then the key cap means 8, 9 ispushed downwardly along the free end portion 2 of key lever 1 until theinsert 9 snaps into the notches in the tongues 4 and 5, the parts thenhaving the position shown in Fig. 1 where shoulders 6 and 7 of thetongues 4 and 5 are respectively located in the grooves 12 and 10 toprevent turning of cap means 8, 9 with respect to the key levers 1, 2.If desired, the upper outer corners of tongues 4 and 5 may be rounded sothat these tongues will automatically move toward each other upon beingpushed into insert 9, and/or the shoulders at the junc tions betweengroove 10 and the recess of insert 9 may be rounded for the samepurpose.

Although the above described construction is preferred, it is possibleto extend the recess of insert 9 completely through the same so that thegroove 10 would only have opposite portions located on the bottomperiphery of the insert 9, and it is also possible to form the groove 12in the top face of insert 9 rather than on 11 which is directed towardthe bottom of key cap 8.

It will be understood that each of the elements described above, or twoor more together, may also find a useful application in other types ofotfice machines differing from the types described above.

While the invention has been illustrated and described as embodied in akey arrangement for ofiice machines, It is not intended to be limited tothe details shown, since various modifications and structural changesmay be made without departing in any Way from the spirit of the presentinvention.

Without further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the gist ofthe present invention that others can by applying current knowledgereadily adapt it for various applications without omitting featuresthat, from the standpoint of prior art, fairly constitute essentialcharacteristics of the generic or specific aspects of this inventionand, therefore, such adaptations should and are intended to becomprehended within the meaning and range of equivalence of thefollowing claims.

What is claimed as new and desired to be Letters Patent is:

l. A key arrangement for ofiice machines and the like, comprising, incombination, key cap means having a bottom face formed with a notch,being formed with a passage communicating with said notch and extendingfrom the latter toward the top face of said key cap means, and beingformed in its interior with a cutout located opposite said notch andalso communicating with said passage, said notch and cutout definingshoulders in said key cap means where said notch and cutout join saidpassage; and a key lever having a springy free end portion extendingthrough said passage, engaging said secured by shoulders, and beinglocated in said cutout and notch for releasably connecting said key capmeans to said key lever.

2. A key arrangement for oflice machines and the like, comprising, incombination, key cap means formed in its interior with a passageextending from the bottom toward the top of said key cap means and alsobeing formed with a pair of substantially parallel elongated cutoutsrespectively located at different distances from the top of said key capmeans, being located opposite each other, and extending laterally fromsaid passage to form shoulders, the lowermost of said cutouts beinglocated at the bottom face of said key cap means; and a key lever havinga springy free end portion extending through said passage, engaging saidshoulders, and being located in said cutouts for releasably connectingsaid key cap means to said key lever.

3. A key arrangement for office machines and the like, comprising, incombination, a key cap formed with a' recess extending inwardly from thebottom thereof and having at the innermost part of said recess an innerface directed toward the bottom of said key cap; an insert located insaid recess and betng fixed to said key cap, said insert having an innerface located adjacent said inner face of said key cap and a bottom outerface, said insert being formed with a passage extending from its innerface toward its outer face and being formed at its outer face with afirst cutout communicating with and extending laterally from saidpassage to form a shoulder therewith, one of said inner faces beingformed with a second cutout located opposite said first cutout and alsoextending laterally from said passage to form a shoulder therewith; anda key lever having a springy free end portion extending through saidpassage, engaging said shoulders, and being located in said cutouts forreleasably connecting said key cap to said key lever.

4. A key arrangement for oflice machines and the like, comprising, incombination, a key cap formed with a; recess extending inwardly from thebottom thereof and having at the innermost part of said recess an innerface directed toward the bottom of said key cap; a metal insert locatedin said recess and being fixed to said key cap, said insert having aninner face located adjacent said inner face of said key cap and a bottomouter face, said insert being formed with a passage extending from itsinner face toward its outer face and being formed at its outer face witha first cutout communicating with and extending laterally from saidpassage to form a shoulder therewith, one of said inner faces beingformed with a second cutout located opposite said first cutout and alsoextending laterally from said passage to form a shoulder therewith; anda key lever having a springy free end portion extending through saidpassage, engaging said shoulders, and being located in said cutouts forreleasably connecting said key cap to said key lever.

5. A key arrangement for ofiice machines and the like, comprising, incombination, a key cap formed with a recess extending inwardly from thebottom thereof and having at the innermost part of said recess an innerface directed toward the bottom of said key cap and being formed with anelongated groove; an insert located in said recess and being fixed tosaid key cap, said insert having an inner face located adjacent saidinner face of said key cap and a bottom outer face, said insert beingformed with a passage extending from its inner face toward its outerface and being formed at its outer face with an elongated cutoutextending laterally from said passage to form a shoulder therewith andbeing substan tially parallel to said groove, said passage forming asecond shoulder with said inner face of said insert; and a key leverhaving a springy free end portion extending through said passage,engaging said shoulders, and being located in said cutout and groove forreleasably connecting said key cap to said key lever.

6. A key arrangement for office machines and the like,

comprising, in combination, a key cap having a top face adapted to carryindicia and having a bottom face located opposite said top face, saidkey cap being formed with a recess extending inwardly from said bottomface thereof toward said top face and said key cap having at theinnermost part of said recess an inner face directed toward the bottomof said key cap and formed with an elongated first groove; an insertlocated in said recess, being fixed to said key cap, having an innerface located adjacent said inner face of said key cap, and having anouter face located adjacent said bottom face of said key cap, saidinsert being formed with a substantially cylindrical recess extendingfrom said inner face of said insert toward said outer face thereof, andsaid insert being formed in its outer face with an elongated secondgroove substantially parallel to said first groove, extending acrosssaid outer face of said insert, and communicating with said cylindricalrecess to provide a pair of shoulders on said insert; and a key leverhaving a springy free end portion formed with a cutout extendinginwardly from the extremity thereof to provide said free end portion ofsaid key lever with a pair of springy tongues capable of being movedtoward each other, each of said tongues having an outer side edgeportion located distant from the other tongue and formed with a notchhaving a length substantially equal to the length of said cylindricalrecess of said insert to provide each of said tongues with a pair ofshoulders located at opposite ends of the notch thereof, said tonguesextending through said cylindrical recess of said insert into said firstgroove, and one of the shoulders of each of said tongues engaging therim of said insert at the junction between said inner face and recessthereof, the other shoulders of said tongues respectively engaging saidshoulders of said insert at the junction between said second groove andcylindrical recess, so that said key cap and key lever are removablyconnected to each other.

7. A key arrangement as defined in claim 6 and wherein said one shoulderof each tongue and said rim of said insert are matingly rounded so thatsaid key cap may be pulled off from said key lever without any tools.

8. A key arrangement for oflice machines and the like comprising, incombination, key cap means formed with a recess and having in saidrecess projections which are adapted to serve as catches, saidprojections having each an elongated side face extending in axialdirection of said key cap means and a pair of end faces substantiallynormal to said side face; and a key lever having a springy free endportion formed with a cutout extending inwardly from the extremitythereof to provide said free end portion of said key lever with a pairof springy tongues capable of being moved toward each other, each ofthese tongues having an outer side edge portion located distant from theother tongue and formed with a notch having a length substantially equalto the length of said side faces of said projections to provide each ofsaid tongues with shoulders located at opposite ends of the notchthereof, said tongues being located in said recess and said shouldersrespectively engaging said end faces of said projections for releasablyconnecting said key cap means to said key lever.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS818,569 Smith Apr. 24, 1906 2,198,818 Helmond Apr. 30, 1940 FOREIGNPATENTS 180,706 Switzerland May 1, 1936

